New York Yankee Fans: Be Proud, Be Grateful

Just a day removed from the Yankees elimination, it isn’t hard to find a disappointed New Yorker. The beloved Yankees are done for the year, and their dreams of a second consecutive world championship are diminished.

As many love to do, we can sit here and talk about what could have happened and what should have happened. We can talk about the mistakes the Yankees made; we can talk about the Yankees lack of luck; we can talk, and talk and talk.

Or, we can put things in perspective, and come to the realization that Yankee fans are lucky enough and we are lucky as it is to have the chance to enjoy baseball.

The Yankees have been to the World Series 40 times in their existence. The Rangers, when the 2010 World Series begins, will have been there once. My point? It’s okay for another team to win for a change.

In the past 16 seasons, the Yankees have made the postseason 15 times. They won the World Series last year, and won it three straight times in the late nineties. The farthest the Rangers made it in the last 16 years is where they are right now. Once again, it’s not a bad thing for another team to be in the World Series.

History aside, why are Yankees fans disappointed? Even with a late season collapse, the Yankees won 95 games, and made it to the sixth game of the American League Championship series.

Yankee fans consider that a failure, while Nationals fans prey for a .400 winning percentage in the regular season.

Yankees fans are lucky, and there is no reason to be disappointed. This was a great season, without many injuries or problems in the clubhouse. Not to mention that the Yankees will likely be back in the postseason next year, and many years to follow.

Furthermore, it’s not a bad thing for Major League Baseball to host an American League Champion that isn’t the Yankees for a change. Too much of anything can be very harmful, and it’s a pleasant change of pace to see a motivated, talented team such as the Rangers in the World Series.

And, of course, Yankee fan or not, you should never be disappointed when your team does not succeed. Sports are meant to be fun, and any sorrow that is created as a result of sports is unnecessary.

Yes, the Yankees lost, but the sun will rise tomorrow, and everyone’s lives will go along, unharmed.

NY Fans: you have it better than anyone, so try not to complain. Baseball fans: your right to watch, enjoy, and root for your team is precious enough, and it’s a victory for us all.